Owner	Pose
Cael Becker	After casually telling Jon and Martin that she plans to make 'an American' out of Agnes - and providing no further context beyond that - Cael leaves the two pups behind, grabs her Glock pistol, and leads her way down to the firing range, with the teenager in tow. As they walk, she gives the girl the basic safety rules everyone needs to know before they're ever handed a gun.     "Rule number one, always act like it's loaded. Rule number two, never point it at anything you don't want to destroy. Rule number three, never put your finger on the trigger until you're ready to destroy.     "All the other rules are basically ways of following those main rules. Don't load your gun until you're ready to fire. Always unload it when you're done. Be aware of what's //behind// your target - in case you miss, or the bullet passes through and keeps going. All of that makes sense?" she asks - glancing at the teen in the lift with her, as she leans casually against the wall.
Jonathan Sims	Agnes, with her newly purple hair and wardrobe ordered off the internet--black leggings, plaid skirt, ribbed gray turtleneck sweater, glow-in-the-dark white sneakers--looks every inch a modern teenager even if her speech patterns are still very formal. She wears gloves, too--she /always/ wears gloves--but they're striped in red and black now. It's a far cry from the /very/ old fashioned clothing she was wearing when they found her.     "It's like my fire," she says, casually conjuring a flame on the palm of her hand and then closing her fingers to make the flame disappear. "Never project it out unless I'm okay with burning things. I understand." Maybe guns aren't that strange when you're a living weapon yourself. "Will I need to take off my gloves?"
Cael Becker	"No, your gloves will be fine," Cael answers casually. "We'll wear ear protection and eye protection in the firing range. It's something I do out in the field, obviously - but there's no reason to ruin our hearing in //practice// when we can prevent it. I'll also show you how to disassemble and reassemble a pistol. It's a good idea to always check the condition of a gun before you use it," she explains simply.     "If you ever squeeze the trigger and nothing happens - just keep pointing it at the target and count for several seconds - and then unload it and set it down. But with modern, well maintained firearms and proper ammunition, it shouldn't be a problem."     She watches the flame the girl summons with curiosity. It was still strange to Cael just how often and how casually people use magic.
Jonathan Sims	"I do find it strange how... casually you talk about this, like it's just a normal every day thing. Does everyone in America know how to use a gun?" Agnes says this with genuine curiosity. "Elias used to say modern technology was far less reliable than magic, but I don't know that I believe anything he told me. And Jon and Martin use guns, right?"     Her brow furrows. "Also... where's the /fire/? They're called firearms, right? But in the TV shows I've been watching, there's never any actual... fire." The girl does spend a rather inordinate amount of time watching television. Or, rather, streaming services.
Cael Becker	"Not everyone in the US, no," Cael replies with amusement. "But Americans believe that we have a fundamental right to bear arms," she explains. "So you'll find some households that have many guns, some that just have one, some that have none... Some that have guns they honestly have no business owning because they're tools of //war// - but that's America for you." She lets out a quiet sigh. Of course, she's seen first hand the results of guns being too easy to acquire.     She steps out of the elavator as they reach the correct floor, leading the way down a short hall to the gun range where they can hear other agents practicing. "Martin and Jon are both trained to use firearms. I don't believe they fire them very often - and here at SHIELD we have access to some very nice, non-lethal firearms tech we went to prefer. The 'fire' is very small and contained. Each bullet contains a small amount of a highly flammable material that combusts. This causes the air to heat and expand quickly, with only one way out - down the barrel of the gun. So it pushes the bullet down the barrel and out so the heated gas can escape. So all the 'fire' is contained in a way that makes it impossible for you to see."
Jonathan Sims	"Oh!" Agnes brightens at that explanation; she clearly has her father's love of random facts and encyclopedic knowledge. "Okay, that makes sense then. I suppose if I'm supposed to work with SHIELD someday I really ought to learn to do this. Non-lethal sounds... better?"     She follows Cael, looking around curiously, and says, "Why did you join SHIELD? I know Jon joined because of the Archive, and because of Martin... and Maritn wanted to help people, and have a place where his magic would be useful." She giggles, and shakes her head. "Martin didn't used to believe in magic, did you know that? Except, he's got a /ton/ of it, it's the weirdest thing. It'd be like you not believing in... ummm... hair dye." Evidently she associates Cael with hair dye now.
Cael Becker	Cael lets out a snort of amusement. "I have a hard time picturing myself not believing in hair dye," she laughs. "But I did used to use //Kool-Aid// as my hair dye. Back in the day, when I was your age. And up until... a few months ago, I didn't believe in magic, either."     She sobers up, however, as she starts to respond to the more serious question. "I joined the NYPD, and the FBI first," she explains. "I, umm... when I was younger, a little older than you, I got involved in a gang and did some... pretty bad stuff. My foster-sister, Alis, got killed as a result. I helped the police prosecute the people in the gangs... and then turned to a career in law enforcement. And then... I ran into someone I'd met once, who'd been the man who convinced me to turn on the gangs. He brought me into SHIELD. And here I am."     As they enter the range, Cael claims a pair of ear muffs, as well as protective glasses, handing one of each off to Agnes.
Jonathan Sims	Agnes frowns thoughtfully at all of that. "So you... you're trying to do better? Trying to... make up for what you did, before? Did you ever kill anyone?" She blinks as soon as the words are out of her mouth. "Sorry," she murmurs. "That's... kind of rude to ask, I guess."     She sighs, and grabs the ear muffs and protective glasses, putting both on; that's not really all that difficult to figure out. "It seems strange, not believing in magic. I've known I had magic my whole life; I've never known life otherwise. But all of this..." She peers around at the gun range. "It's very different than I thought it'd be."
Cael Becker	"I have never //murdered// anyone," Cael answer the girl quietly. "But I've killed people - as an Agent of SHIELD. And when I was a criminal... I once helped kill people," she explains. "I didn't do the shooting, but- legally, I could have been charged with murder for my role. And yes, it's a little rude, but- it's alright."     She leads the girl to one of the gun ranges, and shows her how to disassemble the gun - first removing the clip, then pulling down on two tabs that allow her to remove the slide, and then the spring and barrel. She puts it all back together, and then offers it over to Agnes. "Give it a try," she suggests simply.
Jonathan Sims	Agnes may not have Jon's perfect recall--not yet--but she's a quick learner. She doesn't do it as fast as Cael, but she does it methodically, removing the clip and then pulling down on the tabs to remove the slide, then the spring, then the barrel. She smiles at Cael brightly when she's done, then considers for a moment. Putting it back together might not be /quite/ as easy.     She manages this, too, though, remembering the steps she watched Cael take. Again, no awards for speed, but she gets the job done even if it takes her a little while. "I think I am the only person I know that hasn't killed people, then," she says thoughtfully as she works on this. "Or, well, I suppose I don't know that Lydia's actually ever killed anyone? But I would imagine Martin has, if that happens in SHIELD, and I know Jon has, and the Eye of Ra..." She frowns. "They killed people all the time," she says softly.
Cael Becker	"Not all SHIELD agents have killed. I don't know if Martin has or not - I've never asked," Cael admits - even as she's nodding with approval at the girl's success with the gun. "And I don't know Lydia well enough to say for sure, either." But isn't she a- ...vampire? Wouldn't you assume that a vampire had-? Well. Who knows.     "It's good practice to take your gun apart and reassemble it whenever you intend to use it. I do before every mission. The last thing I want is a malfunctioning weapon in the middle of a life-or-death situation. Now - when you want to fire the gun, you load in a loaded clip..." She pulls one out of her pocket to offer to the girl, "And then take a firing stance. Feet shoulder width apart, knees bent slightly. Put your dominate hand on the weapon first - pointer finger resting here on the trigger guard, your other three fingers around the butt... and then wrap your non-dominate hand over that. Good. Point it at the target, arms straight, but don't lock your elbows."     She studies Agnes posture, giving any necessary corrections before she adds, "Hold it pretty tight - it'll keep back in your hands. That's why you want a pretty secure stance. Then line up both of the sights with your target... and when you're ready, you flick this with your thumb to turn off the safety, and put your finger on the trigger and squeeze."     She makes sure she stays behind the girl, her gaze attentive on each of her motions.
Jonathan Sims	Agnes, it seems, is left-handed like her father. She loads the gun and then puts her left hand on the weapon, wraps her right hand over it, points the gun at the target. She hesitates for a moment, double-checking to make sure she's got everything right. Feet apart, knees bent, arms straight but not locked, okay. And the target is fine to destroy, and the wall behind the target can probably take it, right?     She turns off the safety with her thumb and squeezes the trigger--not quite enough at first, and then she does it more firmly and the gun fires. The bullet goes nowhere near the target--hardly surprising--but the kickback surprises Agnes. She yelps a little and then giggles.     "That," she says, "is /cool/. I could almost feel the fire inside the barrel!" She frowns down the range. "But my aim is really bad."
Cael Becker	"It was your first shot," Cael says with some amusement, smiling at the girl. "That's fine. If we don't have you hitting the target by the time we're done - well. //Then// I'll get a little judgey," she teases in a friendly tone.     "You have another 14 bullets in the clip," she explains. "When I'm out in the field - I sometimes have to keep a pretty solid mental count of how many bullets are left in my clip. It's not a bad thing to practice when you're here at the range."
Jonathan Sims	Agnes nods. "Fourteen. Okay. So I just... do that again?" She's still pointing the gun at the target, peering around at Cael as she does so. She looks back and focuses a little more closely this time, remembering to squeeze the trigger /hard/.     This shot doesn't go /quite/ as wide, but still doesn't quite hit the target. "Oh!" she says almost as soon as the recoil's done hitting, "I'm not lining up the sights on the target!" That'll do it...
Cael Becker	"There are two sights," Cael points out helpfully, tapping each of them. "If you sight down both of them at the same time then... yes. It should give a good idea of where the bullet is headed. Especially here, where everything is stationary, and there's no wind, and a relatively short range... If you get into sniper stuff it gets pretty complicated. Not one of my skills, though."     With a hand on Agnes' elbow, she adjusts the girl's aim a little. "Alright. Give the sights a try - and see what you get."
Jonathan Sims	Agnes takes a long breath and lets it out. "Thirteen," she murmurs to herself, and frowns a little, then lines up the sights with the target and actually looks down them. Knees bent, elbows not locked, squeeze the trigger, and...     The bullet hits the target that time, and even though it's not anywhere near the center Agnes grins. "Ha! Brilliant! It's not as easy as magic... that just goes where you tell it to. People hit the center /every time/?" She seems duly impressed by this notion.
Cael Becker	"With enough practice, yes," Cael agrees, amusement on her features. "When I'm on the range, just shooting at a stationary target without any other distractions... I can hit dead center every time. It's important to develop the skill to reliably send your bullet exactly where you want it to go - because out in the field you have to deal with moving targets, with cover, with civilians... and perhaps with attempting to disable instead of kill," she explains.     "Though as I said - SHIELD has developed a technology that's non-lethal, that works as a sort of tranquilizer and knocks targets unconscious." Nodding her head towards the target she adds, "That was a much better shot."
Jonathan Sims	"That sounds like the kind of thing Jon would approve of," Agnes remarks, looking down to check the gun for a moment. "It's funny... Elias used to put that as a bad thing. As a... weakness. But it seems to me that it must be more, umm, it must take more talent? To be able to avoid killing on purpose, if you're able."     She shrugs, and raises the gun again, aims down the sights, and takes another shot. She's going to need practice, but she already has some degree of ability--or else she was already training in aiming deadly fire where she wanted it to go.
Cael Becker	"I don't think it's a weakness - but I think it can be a risk," Cael answers in a quiet voice, letting out a sigh. "But at the same time, taking a life - it's not something you undo, generally," God her life is weird right now, "so it really should be a last resort. I prefer not to kill - but it someone's trying to kill me and my allies? I won't hesitate."     She watches the girl continuing to practice, and gives a nod, and an approving smile. "We'll have you hitting the center soon."
Jonathan Sims	Agnes keeps firing the gun, counting down the bullets to herself until the clip is empty. By the time she reaches the end of it, she's getting close to hitting the center--she mentions that Martin has told her that 'center mass' is more important than headshots 'like they show in movies.' Maybe it's strange, for a thirteen-year-old so so easily take to using deadly weapons--but, then, she /does/ have a natural ability to create fire. Maybe it comes just as naturally.     With the last round of the clip spent, she turns to Cael and says, "Can I see you shoot?" She sounds almost eager, smiling brightly. "Jon says you blew Michael up with balefire bullets, and didn't waste one." She giggles. "I think he thought it was pretty hot, not that he'd say that to /me/." Is she... trying to tease her father's girlfriend? Maybe a little.
Cael Becker	"I did," Cael confirms. "For all the good it did us. Fourteen center-mass, and one to his fucking face." No, she doesn't bother to censor herself around the girl - and that's just something Jon will have to live with. As she talks, though, she takes the gun from the girl, ejecting the empty cartridge and inserting a new one with a smooth motion. She soon as three fresh targets set up at the end of the range - each at different distances and heights, thanks to the Triskelion's systems, and after a deep breath in, and a slow breath out, she opens fire.     Her aim switches fluidly from one target to the next - each of the three ending up with four hits near the center mass, and one to the head, not a bullet wasted.     But none of the targets were moving.
Jonathan Sims	Agnes doesn't really react to the profanity, beyond blinking a little. She watches Cael carefully, though, as if studying her movements, the way she ejects the cartridge and puts in the new one, the stance she takes. She has the same kind of weirdly penetrating gaze her father does--maybe it's just a latent Archivist thing, that /watching/ like nothing else in the world can possibly pull her interest away.     "Wow," she says when Cael's done. "You're really good." A pause. "Do you like shooting things? I mean, like, is it fun? Enjoyable? Or is it more like doing maths because you're supposed to?"
Cael Becker	Cael actually has to stop and consider this a moment, as she ejects the second cartridge, letting the unloaded gun dangle at her side, pointed down toward the ground. "It's... satisfying. I mean, there's power in firing a weapon. A sense of accomplishment when you're successful, or when you're skills grow, but... I'd rather be driving my Corvette, or riding a motorcycle. There just isn't much of a //thrill// in firing off a gun at a practice range. But's definitely necessary. I come down here several times a week to stay in practice - we don't fire off our weapons as agents as much as some people think, but we always have to ready to do it and do it well. Lives can depend on it."
Jonathan Sims	Agnes folds her arms across her chest. "Well, that doesn't sound very American of you. I thought you were all supposed to love your guns and firing them all the time. Like, waving the gun in the air, 'woo-hoo, freedom!!'" She grins at Cael.     She sobers a little. "I suppose I'm going to have to practice this sort of thing. With the Archive attached to SHIELD... I'm probably going to be an agent someday, if they'll let me."     She hesitates a moment, then says, "...Can I try riding a motorcycle sometime? It sounds like fun. I've barely ever even been in a /car/."
Cael Becker	"Yeah, but I'm law enforcement. And I've seen what the gun-waving, 'woo-hoo freedom' shit does on our streets. It gets people killed. ...honestly, I think we could do with a lot less 'gun rights' in this country." She shrugs her shoulders then adds, "Sometimes I'm a bad American. And yes, I think it's a good idea if you get competant with firearms. But I want to be very clear about something - you never touch a gun without competant adult supervision, or unless it is absolutely an emergency. And you always keep in mind the safety rules. Treat all guns like they're loaded. Never point them at anything you don't want to destroy utterly. Don't load them until you're ready to fire. Don't put your finger on the trigger until you're ready to fire. Always be aware of what's behind your target." She fixes the girl with a very serious stare, and waits for her compliance, before she'll continue.     "Oh, I am absolutely going to take you out on my motorcycle. In face - we've got access to a closed track here..."